ENVIRONMENT PSYCHOLOGY

ASSIGNMENT

SUBMITTED TO:- MS.ANJITHA VENUGOPAL

SUBMITTED BY:- SWATHI MARY SURESH

What Is Air Pollution?

Air pollution is the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to
the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or
to materials. There are many different types of air pollutants, such as gases
(including ammonia, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, methane,
carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons), particulates (both organic and
inorganic), and biological molecules. Air pollution may cause diseases, allergies
and even death to humans; it may also cause harm to other living organisms
such as animals and food crops, and may damage the natural environment (for
example, climate change, ozone depletion or habitat degradation) or built
environment (for example, acid rain). Both human activity and natural processes
can generate air pollution.

History of air pollution in India

Air pollution in India is a serious health issue. Of the 30 most polluted cities in
the world, 21 were in India in 2019. As per a study based on 2016 data, at least
140 million people in India breathe air that is 10 times or more over the WHO
safe limitand 13 of the world's 20 cities with the highest annual levels of air
pollution are in India. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act was
passed in 1981 to regulate air pollution but has failed to reduce pollution
because of poor enforcement of the rules.In 2015, Government of India,
together with IIT Kanpur launched the National Air Quality Index. In 2019,
India launched 'The National Clean Air Programme' with tentative national
target of 20%-30% reduction in PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations by 2024,
considering 2017 as the base year for comparison. It will be rolled out in 102
cities that are considered to have air quality worse than the National Ambient
Air Quality Standards.

Current scenario air pollution in india

Air pollution in India is a serious health issue.Of the 30 most polluted cities in
the world, 21 were in India in 2019.As per a study based on 2016 data, at least
140 million people in India breathe air that is 10 times or more over the WHO
safe limit and 13 of the world's 20 cities with the highest annual levels of air
pollution are in India. 51% of the pollution is caused by industrial pollution, 27
% by vehicles, 17% by crop burning and 5% by fireworks. Air pollution
contributes to the premature deaths of 2 million Indians every year. Emissions
come from vehicles and industry, whereas in rural areas, much of the pollution
stems from biomass burning for cooking and keeping warm. In autumn and
spring months, large scale crop residue burning in agriculture fields – a cheaper
alternative to mechanical tilling – is a major source of smoke, smog and
particulate pollution.India has a low per capita emissions of greenhouse gases
but the country as a whole is the third largest greenhouse gas producer after
China and the United States

Control measures taken by India

I) Steps to curb vehicular emission

With the increase in number of vehicles on Indian roads, air pollution resulting
from vehicular emissions has become the main source of air pollution in the
urban centres of the country

2)Adopting emission norms and fuel regulation standards

Since the year 2000, India started adopting European emission and fuel
regulations for all categories of vehicles. Under this plan,the Bharat Stage II
emission standards were introduced initially in the four metro cities to manage
the amount of air pollutants released by the internal combustion engine
equipments by using cleaner fuel with low sulphur content and improved
combustion engines.
3) II) Reducing the dependence on biomass burning in rural households

Biomass – fuel wood, agricultural residue and animal waste – is among the most
prevalent sources of energy in India, with almost 87% of rural households and
26% of urban households dependent on biomass for cooking. These fuels are
burned in outdated cook stoves as a result of which they emit harmful
pollutants, contributing to indoor air pollution in rural areas.

What can general population do to reduce air pollution in future.

 Turning off lights and appliances when they are not in use.

 Using energy efficient light bulbs and appliances.

 Buying fewer things that are manufactured using fossil fuels.

Conclusion

Air Pollution is a complicated issue and negatively impacts the health of

citizens as well as the economy of the country. Both indoor and outdoor air
pollution have emerged as one of the leading causes of deaths in India and while
recent reports highlight the worsening outdoor air pollution in urban centres,
indoor air pollution due to biomass burning and inefficient ‘chulhas’ is also an
area of concern. The Government of India and the state governments have
recognized the adverse effect of air pollution and there is increased seriousness
about addressing the air quality issue among all the stakeholders. Furthermore,
recent efforts such as the launch of National Air Quality Index point to the need
for enhancing public awareness on the quality of air they are breathing. A shift
towards renewable energy is part of the plan to reduce dependency on fossil
fuels as well as provide clean energy to households, which are currently using
kerosene for lighting purposes

Reference

 Regan, Helen (2020-02-26). "21 of the world's 30 cities with the worst air pollution
are in India". CNN.
 National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Retrieved (2019-03-04) India's
air pollution, health burden get NIEHS attention (Environmental Factor, September
2018)".